The Office of Letters and Light Blog

30 Covers, 30 Days 2011: Curtain Call and Thank You!

The office is only just starting to come down off the high that was NaNoWriMo. Every November, we’re lucky enough to experience creativity that’s tidal-wave in force, writing alongside hundreds of thousands of writers like you all around the world. That creative energy has some amazing effects, including the inspiration of our designers for the 30 Covers, 30 Days project, led by John Gall, who needs no adjectives.

If you can believe it, the 30 Covers, 30 Days tag is one of the most visited on our blog during November. We were so lucky this year: more people than ever were discussing the beautiful, and often provocative covers. A bit of a breakdown:

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30 Covers, 30 Days 2011: Day 30

Man alive! It is the very last day of 30 Covers, 30 Days, if you can believe it. It’s been an incredible month, full of gripping synopses, evocative covers, and some spirited discussion, both here and in our forums. Thank you so much to all of our Wrimos, our designers, and, of course, the magnanimous, magnificent John Gall. Today’s final cover was created in 24 hours by the impressive Laurie Rosenwald:

The Sandwich Technique by knittingkneedle

Above a Burger King in South London, The Lewisham School of Language welcomes a new class of students wishing to learn English as a second language.

Meet Raj Puri, a twenty nine year old Pakistani-born, and proud first generation British citizen. He loves fish and chips, football, and Princess Diana; his dream is to meet Ian Beale from EastEnders. On the plus side, the class he teaches is dirt-cheap but apparently, when it comes to basic conversational English, you really do get what you pay for.

The students, including a Korean divorcee, a cantankerous seventy-five-year-old Polish builder, an African refugee and a glamorous mail order bride, all have their different reasons for studying English, and indeed, vastly different reasons for leaving their homeland but they are all the same in their isolation from the country they inhabit — hindered and hidden behind that very large barrier of language. 

Raj’s methods are unorthodox, his pronunciation and grasp of basic grammar is poor, but over ten weeks, through terribly written essays and an overdose of British soap operas, both the students and Raj learn something — if not how to pass their end of year exams — about struggles that transcend language, about prejudice, friendship and what it means to be a citizen of the world.

A designer, animator and illustrator, Laurie Rosenwald also does humor writing, as well as writing which is only marginally funny.

Her design studio, rosenworld, doesn’t exist. In spite of this, rosenworld.com was launched in 1995.

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30 Covers, 30 Days 2011: Day 29

It’s the second-to-last day of November! Good luck to all of you who are sprinting towards the finish line, and a huge congratulations to everyone who’s already won. Today’s cover was created in 24 hours by the first-class Charlotte Strick:

By Example by Puella Hilare

Gayle Cord never thought that super powers were real— until she survived an insane accident and found herself with powers that boggled her mind, among them (and her favorite) the ability to fly! 

Fortunately, her father had been a big comic book fan (as well as a cop) before he died, and had passed that love on to her. They’d had long, rambling talks about the things in comics that would never work in the real world, so when Gayle decided to put on a costume and play superhero, she did things in a smart, thought-out fashion. 

She hadn’t realized, though, how her heroics would affect the world around her— and how that would affect her. A secret identity turned out to be a pain in the neck— but worse was her growing conviction that she couldn’t possibly be the only person with super-powers for very long. Surely someone else would get powers— and then things would be very different. 

In fact, things were different already— and as she struggled with how much of the truth to give the public that wanted to know as much as possible about the masked heroine Gayle Cord had become, she realized something very, very important: 

When you are the first of anything, you have to lead…By Example.

30 Covers, 30 Days 2011: Day 28

It’s YWP Monday! We promised you another cover from the deeply talented Roberto de Vicq, and we are here to deliver. The second of the covers done in 24 hours by Roberto is below:

SS Incubo Films by Susie Miller

The movie studio Incubo Films has a groundbreaking documentary in the works: put a bunch of teenagers on a boat for a year, and watch what happens. 

The story follows Felicia and Derren, the most unlikely of friends, bound together by simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. They will have to work together to figure out just what is really happens below deck, and what Felicia’s father has to do with it.

Is there something more going on, or do adults really just want to get to know “the brains of teenagers”?

Roberto de Vicq is a designer who is recognized for his sophisticated use of typography. Restaurants, publications, logos, hand lettering, his work is always a visual surprise. Please visit www.devicq.com.

30 Covers, 30 Days: Day 27

Today’s cover was created in 24 hours by the dynamic duo known as Zut Alors!:

On the Breath of Rita by figsandthistles

29-year-old Rita has long admired Matthew, the bike messenger who picks up her envelopes at the office to courier them to downtown courthouses. But one day Matthew arrives solemn and concerned. She asks him a question that will carry her into the heart of his strange life, and in the days that follow, into a strange universe filled with muses and half-humans in the middle of a war, for which Matthew is of the utmost importance. 

Rita has to decide if she will stay with Matthew and risk becoming a part of this universe in which her human breath is valued for the power it contains to bring things to life, or turn away from the battle with the elements in this realm that are slowly taking over her mind.

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30 Covers, 30 Days: Day 26

Today’s cover was created in 24 hours by the very talented Mark Lazenby:

When Pink Hippo Fell by awesome speller

Lizzie returns to the small beachside town of Eastbourne, trying to put aside memories of her family’s abrupt departure from there ten years earlier when she was a girl. But no sooner does she start working in her granny’s rock candy shop than she comes across the stuffed pink hippo she left behind…and she finds that whatever it was trying to tell her as a child, it is trying much harder to tell her now. The more she becomes involved, the more Ryan, her ex-boyfriend’s twin brother, does, too, despite her best attempts to keep him out of the increasing danger that threatens to take her life.

30 Covers, 30 Days: Day 25

Today’s cover was created in 24 hours by the ingenious Jamie Keenan:

Lancer’s War by Tom Martin (Note: As always, we list authors by their username rather than their full name. The name requested by the author for his book cover was Tom Olivier-Martin).

No one can predict the future.

There was no apocalypse that ravaged the planet, no global disaster. The near collapse of humanity came from the apathy and depravity that has always defined us. The last megacorporations are now pivotal to humanity’s survival, specializing in resource recycling, agriculture and energy, the secrets of which are highly coveted and incredibly well guarded. It would seem that war would be inevitable, but a new sort of global conflict has arisen.

Enter the Lancers, mercenaries that pilot massive cyborgs, sponsored by governments and private organizations. They fight for the access rights to the megacorporation’s resources, dueling in gladiatorial-style combat, at once both a source of great entertainment for the masses and the only hope some countries have of re-emerging from this new age of poverty.

Ethan and Chloe are up-and-coming Lancers, orphaned twins that were raised and bred to be the best. All seems well in their world until they meet Rana, a secretive and anti-social girl that might just be the best Lancer anyone has ever seen, but whose true nature might tear them apart. And even as they struggle to consolidate their differences, the war of the Lancers will take its toll and cost them more than they could ever imagine.

Will they survive the true price of being a Lancer, or will it destroy them, like it has so many others before?

No one can predict the future.

30 Covers, 30 Days: Day 24

To all who celebrate today, happy Thanksgiving! Today’s cover was designed in 24 hours by Henry Steadman, a force to be reckoned with. He was able to do several variations on the cover:

Papyrus by Miss K

Siobhan Connelly, freelance graphic designer, loathes the typeface Papyrus. And yet, the Museum of Ancient History and Antiquities has specially requested it for a brochure promoting their new display on Ancient Nineveh. 

Before Siobhan can even get the pictures she needs to fill in the empty spaces on the brochure, strange things begin happening at the museum. As she tries to piece together where this string of bad luck is coming from, she meets Seamus Delaney, a young man with a story about an ancient curse. Before long she is caught up in a web of intrigue and mystery. What really happened in Ancient Nineveh? Why is there a fish motif running through the new display? How much does Seamus know? And just exactly what typeface does one pair with Papyrus?

Henry Steadman has worked in publishing design for 25 years after having mistakenly wandered in looking for a purpose. After serving an apprenticeship in the art departments of various large UK publishing houses, he has been freelance for the past 10 years. He is now hoping that good behaviour and a genuine display of remorse will lead successfully in an appeal for early release.

A sampling of larger images under the cut:

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30 Covers, 30 Days 2011: Day 23

Keep those word counts humming through this homestretch! Today’s inspirational cover was created in 24 hours by the one-woman powerhouse, Ingrid Paulson:

Nevermore. by articzombie

When wizard Charlie created the Nevermore Agency back in his ninth grade year, he expected the worst. De-ghosting every day, killer spiders from Mars, the usual the police cared too little to mess with. But now in college, he really does miss those days he used to worry over. Because the weirdest things in his life now are his girlfriend, a nearly blind selkie hipster, and her fabulous vampire boss at Dante’s Parlor of Theatrics.

However, when the witch Priscil Stone arrives in his apartment to ask him to track down a dangerous prankster, it would seem he was asking for a bit too much.

Ingrid Paulson runs her own one-woman studio, Ingrid Paulson Design, and has been designing books (in pretty much every category) longer than she’d like to admit. Prior to freelance, she was Art Director of Raincoast Books in Vancouver, and designer at McClelland & Stewart. She lives in Toronto.

30 Covers, 30 Days 2011: Day 22

Happy Tuesday of the last full week to write your novel! Today’s cover was created in 24 hours by the well-traveled, deeply-talented Jennifer Heuer:

The Philosopher Project by Taylor_Clogston

Unknown to the world, a group of individuals set up a long-term experiment to observe human nature. In this experiment, generations of humans live in an enclosed community called Second Eden, separated from the outside world. They are given a code of ethics to live by and then left alone, observed without their knowledge.

For years the humans in the experiment live in blissful naivete, without knowing real pain or fear, and thus, not knowing the real triumph or courage that results from that.

When the experimenters decide the time is right they release several of the experiment’s subjects into the real world, which at first glance seems the same as their community.

However, the more the subjects are exposed to the real world the more they realize what it really is to live with emotions like sorrow, joy, and love rather than as a subject in an experiment.

Mankind’s greatest wish is to return to Eden. But what happens when history repeats itself?

Jennifer Heuer is a full-time freelance designer out of Brooklyn, NY. She’s just returned from a year’s adventure in beautiful Portland, OR topped off by an 8,400 mile road trip across the country. Jennifer has recently designed for Simon & Schuster; HarperCollins; Little,Brown; Scribner; W.W. Norton & Co; Egmont; Freepress; Grand Central; Random House; and Faceout Studios. She’s happy to be home again!

30 Covers, 30 Days: Day 21

Today’s Young Writers Program cover (a bit late, apologies!) was designed in 24 hours by the incredible, superhero-of-a-designer, Roberto de Vicq:

Peace, Love, and BFFs by meg613

Four girls, who are best friends, find their way through sixth grade while battling broken hearts, evil teachers, and sinister lunch ladies.

Roberto de Vicq is a designer who is recognized for his sophisticated use of typography. Restaurants, publications, logos, hand lettering, his work is always a visual surprise. Please visit www.devicq.com.

There are more covers for the students who are participating with us over at the Young Writers Program coming next Monday, with a bonus! Roberto put on his superhero cape and busted out two, that’s right, two covers. The second one will be posted soon!

30 Covers, 30 Days: Day 20

Happy Sunday! We’re abuzz today with anticipation for tonight’s Night of Writing Dangerously. We’re so excited to meet Wrimos from all corners. Enjoy today’s cover, designed, as always, in 24 hours, by the one, the only Abby Weintraub:

Strong Like You by Silverblown

Northside is your ordinary, self-contained suburb, located on the edge of West Brookshire, the capital of Andis. Its inhabitants are friendly and good-willed, blessed with kind hearts that openly welcomed Mr. Leighton, a timid and observant federal cryptanalyst for the government of Andis, to the neighbourhood when he moved in to the semi-old townhouse on Main Street.

Their lives are a huge contrast to his own: simple, relaxed, open and most of all, burden-free. Or so it seems. Mr. Leighton watches as Northside’s secrets come to light and its residents deal with love, loss and life as much as the next person. A pinch of prejudice here, a dash of greed there; with a spoonful of death, a cup of espionage in the neighbourhood, and a sudden war with the neighbouring country mixed altogether, makes a horribly exciting time for Northside and a life-changing experience for Mr. Leighton.

Abby Weintraub is a graphic designer living in Los Angeles.